My dad worked for North American in Kansas City, Kansas where B-25's were built. He installed and checked out the radio equipment in them. He was one of many who contributed to the war effort.

Ron Johnson, 21.08.2010

My dad worked for North American in Kansas City, Kansas where B-25's were built. He installed and checked out the radio equipment in them. He was one of many who contributed to the war effort.

Ned Wernick, 20.08.2010

With the Marine Corps flew as top turret gunner in the D and J models in mopping up and heckler raids in the Northern Solomons. Primarily against Rabaul on New Britain, Kavieng on New Ireland and low level tree top bombing and strafing on Bougainville 1944-1945

Carl Wollaston, 09.05.2010

B-25s were the bombers that starred on the movie "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo".I believe that a few of them crashed during the time that they were shooting the movie.

Larry Simpson, 06.04.2010

My dad, Col. Thomas S Simpson (now age 89)loved the B-25; flew 4000 hrs in it. Was with Chennault's 14th AF in CBI 1943-44. Shot down 7-4-44 in northern Burma-crash landed Lido Road,about 6000' up in the rugged mountains - plane burning, jumped out, enemy approached, climbed back in to top turret, turned 2 50 cal between tails, killed 18 Japanese, jumped out, ran 7 days thru jungle, fired upon every day, saw 400 US prisoners-unable to help them. Poured blood out of boots daily from leeches; tribes helped with food and trip up river, black US Marines took them to China; all got malaria; 1945 given Silver Star & Chinese Medal of Honor. Retired 1962 after turning down BG star because they wouldn't let him fly anymore. Still alive and remembers all military stories. I give speeches around N Calif - have his uniforms, logbooks, fotos, whiskey flask, medals, 1000+ personnel papers. All these men from this time were incredibly brave and are my HEROES!!

Edward Alspach, 31.03.2010

I instructed at Reese in B-25s after graduating from Goodfellow. I took Jim Woodhead( see post 8.06.2008 ) on a cross-country, if I remember correctly. On another night cross-country, watched the ignition harness arcing at 23,000 feet just before the right engine coughed it's guts out. I still have a piece of one of the pistons I picked out of the engine cowling after landing.Remember, Doolittle's Raiders didn't have R-2600s. They were much smaller.

Charles Wagamon. LTC , USAF Re, 01.03.2010

I was with the 340th BG, B/N, on Corsica and later in Italy near the end of the war. The maintenance on these 25's was always first class so no matter what demands were placed on them during a mission they always performed. On July 3rd we were given 6K of the 486th BS to fly back to Savannah,GA. We logged 52 hours from Italy to Africa to Ascension Island, to Natal, to Belem, to Georgetown to Puerto Rico to Hunter Field. Sgt. Garland, the crew chief, changed a left main tire on Ascension but other than that 6K never missed a beat. 6K had a 103 missions on it with an ME 109 shot down to its credit. What a remarable airplane. The hardest part of the flight was leaving her there on the tarmac and not knowing who would be flying her and not knowing the super service she gave to us in the 486th and bringing us safely home. After shutdown I just sat in her listening to the gyros wind down and the sounds hot metal gives as it contracts so I could remember what it was like to have flown in such an airplane in combat and my last private contact with her. There are some who thought planes were just just well formed aluminum sheets fashioned into shapes with engines attached. I always thought 6K was much more than that. I remained convinced that 6K had a soul.

Robert H Meek JR, 01.03.2010

My Dad 2LT Robert H Meek was flying copilot in a J model tail number 7Z of the 487th BS flying out of Corsica on October 19, 1944 when he was hit and killed instantly by flak. Despite being wounded himself the pilot 2lT Wilbur Lentz got the plane back to Corsica and landed it. At testament to the B-25. I have before and after pictures and it was really shot up. Some day I hope to get my ride in one.In their memory,Robert H Meek JRColonel USAR (R)

Charles P. Hattenstein, 27.02.2010

I was at Vance AFB, Enid, Ok. from 1949-1954. was aircraft mechanic and fligt engineer (B-25s-North Stage) with B-25 s/n 45-8873A. Flew daily four hour flights with cadets/student pilots. I published a book "Behind The Copilot seat" in 2006 that depicted my experiences flying with cadets/stucent pilots at that time. (Published by Author House)

Verne Lietz, 28.01.2010

Trained 65 hours in B-25s at Reese AFB, class 50G. They were great planes to fly. 69 years later I can still remember the thrill of listening to those engines roar (out of sync on take-off) as they pulled us back in the seat. In training we cruised at 200 mph and never got higher than 10,000 feet, whereas I had already gone higher in my own 65 h.p. 1946 Piper Cub. Wish I had been a pilot in the 25 during the war instead of a gun mechanic.

Stan Copp, 26.01.2010

We (MIA Charities aka "Moore's Marauders" Team #7) are planning to visit the 29 January 1953 wreck of AC 5246, an RCAF B25 Mitchell that crashed on a training flight from Saskatoon to the Vancouver area. We hope to fix a memorial plaque on, or near, the wreckage in memory of the five air crew who perished. If anyone out there has any information (Dept of Nat'l Defense hasn't forwarded the crash scene report to us) - we would appreciate hearing from you.

David Gunn, 18.01.2010

Flew 32 missions with the 38th Bomb Group (jack DeTour above)38th was first medium bomb group to fly B-25s all the way from San Francisco to Australia in Aug. 1942 by the 71st Squadron and 405th Squadrons, the only two Squadron Bomb Group. Two squadrons had earlier been detached from the 38th to fly their Martin Marauder B-26s from San Francisco to New Caledonia - the first to fly from San Francisco to Hawaii in May/June 1942, two of which participated in the Battle of Midway. The B-25s flown to Australia in August were B25C and B-25Ds. In the Spring of 1943, they were modified to have eight forwad firing .50s. B-25Gs joined the outfit in August 1943 flown by the new 822nd and 823rd Squadrons. This plane had the 75 mm cannon in the nose with two .50 machine guns. Cannon was soon removed and two more machine guns installed with two more on each side under the pilot. In Spring of 1944, some B-25Hs came to the outfit, a;so with the 75. Were not kept as they had no copilot seat and we needed copilots and didn't like the 75.. B-25Js began arriving in July 1944. Most were equipped with solid nose with 8 .50 cal. machine guns and had two more .50s on each side under the pilot's compartment. There were B-25Js which retained the bombardiers glass nose compartment and used aas lead ships in medium altitude bombing missions. The top turret had been moved forward to engineer/navigator compartment for added forward firing power. I ditched one near Tarakan Borneo in Dec. 1944. Consider it the best waterlanding plane the Army Air Corps had. Most missions were strafing bombing missions during which we often brought home tree foliage in nacells and dents in wing. One plane clipped of 8" tree, a notch in leading endge of wing between engine and fuselage and tail, and came home, engine not missing a beat. A rugged, sweet plane to fly.

Fred Goodrich, 16.01.2010

Graduated from Lubbock TX Air Force Base, flew 46 missions in the Asiatic Pacific, after the war retrained American prison of war pilots at Boca Raton Air Force Base. The B-25,J-27 model was a great and forgiving aircraft, I loved it. All my missions were strafing at tree top level and skip bombing, all with 10 100 pound bombs; best time of my life!

Tom Crouch, 16.01.2010

Sorry Jim. The last B-25 class at Reese AFB was 59-E.

Bill Pitsker (Bill, the school, 09.01.2010

How well I remember this bird, in its USAF training configuration (Reese AFB, 57-D). The way that twin tail vibrated at certain RPM settings didn't do mujch for the confidence of the trainee. But, I took one up to 23,500' (high-blower), and scared the p**s out of my crew chief. It was a great instrument trainer, (and transitioning to the Douglas C-124 was rather easy). Those Wright Cyclone R-1850s (?) made an unmistakeable racket, especially when equipped with the short stacks (no collector ring). Ours were -J, -L, and -N models, the L's being solid nosed attack versions, with the cannon and/or machine guns removed, of course.

Hank Goldman: Well, there were many B-25J with 8x M2 in the nose, but majority had normal greenhouse, my dear friend:-) Only G and H versions had gun noses in all examples built. But you are right, this is not B-25J. "H" and "J" versions have totally different defensive armamment- the dorsal turret is just behind the cockpit, there are two M2 on the sides of the fuselage and it also has turret on the tail, like the very early versions. On the 3-wiew is one of them, B-25B.

Mark, 28.04.2009

I grew up in Pasadena, Texas and our house was located under the training "loop" (for the sake of a better word) for Ellington field (AFB). (Same field where Retired Pres. Geo W. flew out of for a time). Don't know if they were doing pilot training touch and go's or what but they (B25's) came over all day, every day. Year was somewhere around 1946 (before the Air Core became the USAF in '47 as I recall)

The planes came over the house in an arc completing the loop and I watched everyone. Apparently back then minimum altitude over a city wasn't invented yet and the planes were so low that I could clearly see the pilot (made a CCW circle), and sometimes waved at them. Loved to hear the engines.

When Ellington had open house and an air show, I couldn't wait for daddy to take me out there to see the 25's and other aircraft. I guess that's where I got the idea that when I grew up I wanted to be in the Air Corps which I did (USAF) but by then I wanted to be a fixer upper rather than a breaker upper...ha no insult intended. Had no desire to be a pilot. I was in love and wanted to learn a trade that I could use at local commercial airports to support a (hopefully soon to be) family. I joined up initially wanting to be a jet engine mechanic but scored high in electronics and they talked me into that. Was probably the second best thing that happened in my life (electronics career)......marrying my sweetheart was the best....been 47 1/2 years now.

Mark

Jock Williams, 07.04.2009

I checked out in the Mitchell under the tutelage of Vern Schille -a Canadian aviation legend -at the Canadian Warplane Heritage in Hamilton Canada -a marvellous flying museum!. It flew like it looks -it was a beautiful airplane with no vices that I could detect -anybody who had ever flown a King Air or any other medium twin could transition to it without any problem. The Warplane Heritage aircraft was the hard nosed model -I think it had 8 .50 cals up there -and as a former fighter pilot I would have loved to give them a try on a ground target, while low passes gave me the impression that it would have been an excellent skip bomber.Mostly...there was the mystique of it being "a Mitchell" -one of the most famous aircraft of WW2. It was an honour!

Jock Williams

Henry L. Hoey, Jr. Lt. Col. US, 15.10.2008

Graduated Class 53-G. After six months at Bartow AB Fla. in the AT-6, spent the next six months at Vance AFB, Okla. wih 40 hrs in T-28 and then up to North Stage to fly tis wonderful aircraft; it was an experience I will never forget. Enjoyed every minute in the air with this marvelous airplane. A toast to all who flew it.